The anti-terror squad of the State police arrested Maoist leader Usman Melethil on Tuesday. He was wanted in connection with a UAPA case involving Allan Shuhaib and Thaha Fazal registered at Pantheerankavu in Kozhikode in November 2019.
However, there were conflicting reports about the time and place of his arrest. Although the police selectively leaked to the media that Usman was arrested from Pattikkad, near Perinthalmanna, on Tuesday, sources indicated that he had been picked up on Monday from another location.
Usman was taken to a police camp at Areekode for questioning. Several senior officers have reached the camp to grill him. Tribal sources said that Usman was seen at Kakkadampoyil, Thirunelli and Mepadi areas in recent months.
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The case
Distantly related to C.P. Jaleel, the Maoist leader from Pandikkad who was killed by the police at a resort in Wayanad, Usman was chatting with Allan and Thaha when they were picked up by the police on November 2, 2019.
The police team which picked up Thaha and Allan from Pantheerankavu had not been aware of their Maoist links. The police grew suspicious after Usman ran away on seeing them and Allan started shouting Maoist slogans. Usman had been named the third accused in the case booked uder UAPA.
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According to the police, there are several cases against him in different police stations in Kozhikode and Malappuram.